Unwanted Destiny
by anime-catdragon
Summary: Risikah is a half demon with a shady past she'd rather forget, and why does she and Inuyasha look so much alike? read and review please
1. The beginning

Disclaimer: Let's put it this way; If you recognize it, it ain't mine!

Ugg, for the second time, here it is…let's hope it works this time. Anyway, thanks to Mizuu, Misty, and anyone else who read this and took the time to really help me out with it, couldn't have done it without you guys! And also many thanks to Roku Kyu for reviewing last time and alerting me to the glitch, as well as helping me fix it! Well, I realize there's a bunch of mistakes still, and if anyone reads this, I apologize ahead of time, I just need to get it up, so that I can print it out for my creative writing class tomarrow! Lol, I promise I will fix them though…. Now onto the story, please refrain from flames until later, since this is my first ever fic…yeah.

* * *

"_Daddy!" A little girl screamed, her voice echoing in the large room. She had woken up from a nightmare she could not remember, and had made her way down the long dark hallway to her father's office where he'd be either reading, or doing some kind of paper work. Finally, after what seemed like hours of cautiously walking in the dark, trying not to make a sound, she arrived at her father's office, only to find that the door was slightly open._

_ The little girl hesitated, her senses heightening in the still night air as her muscles tightened and the hair at the back of her neck rose. Every instinct told her to run, her muscles ached for the action, but she ignored the feeling that danger was frighteningly close. Slowly, hesitantly, she pushed open the door and stepped inside her father's office. Normally greeted by the warm light of a candle or lantern that her father used to work by, the darkness that surrounded her now surprised and confused her. Her eyes didn't take long to adjust to the blanketing darkness, however, and with the help of the light from the full moon that cascaded through the window, she was able to see as clearly as if it were daylight. She slowly looked around her at the moonlit room, and what she saw would forever haunt her dreams._

_ Her father's desk was completely flipped over, its contents strewn all over the floor. The light from the moon shown through the broken window where her father's chair had smashed through on it's way to the court yard below, the light catching the jagged shards of the broken glass that littered the floor. But what she saw next sent icy chills down her spine and her breath caught in her throat. Her nose caught the scent of blood, and she turned her head in the direction it came from. Bile rose in her throat as her eyes came across the scene before her. Blood covered the wall, and her father's body lay motionless on the floor beside it, a puddle of blood slowly oozing from a wound in his side. Without a second thought, the girl ran to his side. Kneeling beside him in the dark sticky liquid, she touched his face. Ice cold and pale, she knew he was dead. She choked back a sob as tears threatened to spill from her eyes. She clutched his cold hand with her own, hoping, praying that she was wrong, that somehow he would return the squeeze, but he never did. The tears that she had been trying to fight back spilled out onto her cheeks, and her sobs came easier and more frequent. Closing her eyes, she rested her head against his hand and succumbed to her sorrow._

_ After what seemed like hours, but could only have been minutes, she opened her eyes and caught the glint of moonlight reflecting off of something in her father's chest. Reaching out her hand, her fingers clasped the hilt of a silver dagger. Anger swept over her like a tidal wave. Someone had killed her father. Someone cruel and despicable had taken him from her. A rage she had never known coursed through her body, running through her veins and pounding in her temples. She screamed the wordless cry of pain and anger as she ripped the dagger from his chest, not even aware that the cry had come from her own throat. Clutching the hilt in her hand, she began to examine the object that took her father's life._

_ Turning the weapon over in her hand, and with the help of the moonlight, she noticed the intricate designs that were delicately etched in the silver blade. The body of a running wolf was etched in the delicate blade, and if not for the blood still dripping off the tip, she would have thought it beautiful. How could something so beautiful have taken the life of her father? Clutching the blade to her chest, the girl cried inconsolably. Suddenly laughter filled the room, a cruel, wicked sound that froze her blood and chilled her to the bone. She froze, her muscles tightening as she recognized the sound. Slowly turning around, she was met by a fierce blow to the face, slamming her into the wall. She cringed as her head hit the wooden surface, the force of the blow leaving her disoriented. She slid down to the floor, leaving a trail of blood on the wall from where the back of her head smashed into it. Trying to blink past the black fog that had clouded her vision, she attempted to stand. The laughter became louder as the man who had struck her watched her struggle with the effort to do so. She leaned against the wall for support, and glared at the man laughing at her. At least, she hoped it was a glare. She was too disoriented to really make the effort. _

"_Did you honestly think you could stop me?" he laughed menacingly, sending shivers down her back. _

_ He took a step towards her and she flinched, trying to seem as small as she could. She backed up as far as the wall would let her. It looked as if she was trying to merge with the wall its self. He laughed at her action, and, bringing his arm up again, he struck her hard against her face, snapping her head to the side. He smiled as she cried out in pain. He grabbed a fist full of her hair from the back of her head, pulling it up so that she was looking at him face to face, eye to eye. She whimpered, both from the pain his grip was causing and the fear that was continuously rising in her body. His smile grew wider and more sadistic as he grabbed the dagger that she had dropped and pressed it to her neck. Her eyes grew wide with fear and he pressed the blade deeper into her flesh, whispering in her ear._

"_You will be broken! Corico will pay nicely for someone such as you. Young, strong, you'd be a perfect slave!" Tears streamed down her face as she felt the blade at her neck cutting into her skin. The man must have noticed as well, for he thrust the dagger down, embedding the blade a good three inches into the solid oak floor at his side. Using his free hand, he held both of her tiny fists in an iron grip. Still holding her hair in his fist, he brought her head up farther, examining her with malice in his eyes. She glared back at him, fire in her own, as she brought her leg up and kicked him as hard as she could in the shin. He gasped in pain, letting go of her hair and arms as he shoved her away from him. The force of his push sent her stumbling backwards, and she tripped over her father's body. She fell to her knees, just as he recovered. Glaring menacingly at her, he rushed toward so quickly she had no time to react. He grabbed her throat with his right hand and pinned her to the wall. _

"_Your lack of obedience may be a problem," he growled, "but I'm sure we could fix that!__And with that he threw her across the room. She hit the wall hard, staggering in her attempt to regain her footing, and knocking over a bookshelf in the process. The noise it made as it fell echoed throughout the room, and into the hallway. The man didn't seem to care about the noise, however, as he walked menacingly towards her._

"_He tried to stop me, you know," he said in a casual tone, motioning to the body on the floor. "He told me to leave you alone, that if I touched you again, he'd have me executed," He said, laughing at the last part. His laughter became hysterical as he appeared to be thinking of something else._

"_Did you tell him what was happening?" He asked between his laughter, "'Cause look where it got him!" He laughed even harder. She flinched at his words. Was it really her fault that he was dead? No! That couldn't be true, she never mentioned to anyone what happened when her father was away, how could it have been her fault? __He took a step closer to her, snapping her out of her thoughts. She flinched again as he raised his arm to strike her._

"_Don't touch her!" Someone growled in the door way. _

"_Odessa, how good of you to join us!" He said in a cool tone, not even bothering to turn his head to look at her, as if her presence there meant nothing at all._

"_Let her go Lucien!" Odessa said her voice cold and threatening._

"_And if I don't?" Lucien asked, his hand still rose, as if he would strike her any minute. __His question was met by silence as Odessa averted her gaze. Lucien smiled at her silence._

"_That's what I thought!" he said as he backhanded the girl. She slammed into the floor, crying out in pain as her head hit the cold, hard floor. Odessa snapped her head up at the girl's cry of pain, glaring at Lucien as he again stepped towards her._

"_I SAID LEAVE HER ALONE!" she screamed at him. Lucien looked shocked for a moment. Counting on her silence, her sudden outburst took him by surprise and he stopped in his tracks and stared at her. This was what Odessa had counted on. _"_Kia, come here!" she said calmly yet urgently. The little girl looked up at the sound of her name, but couldn't muster the energy to do anymore.__Lucien recovered in a moment, and once again moved towards the little girl._

"_Kianna, now!" Odessa said her voice slightly louder than before, not lacking in urgency, yet still just as calm. Kianna snapped to attention as Odessa used her full name instead of her nickname as everyone usually did. She attempted to stand, but failed miserably, her vision swimming at the mere turning of her head. All the while, Lucien moved closer and closer to her. After what seemed like hours, she was able to summon the strength to move, and half walked, half crawled to Odessa. Time seemed to stand still as Lucien's pace quickened, determined to intercept her and come between her and Odessa, but the Gods were on her side, and soon she found herself in Odessa's arms._

_ Odessa wasted no time. The moment Kia was in her arms she stood up and backed up towards the doorway. The rage in Lucien's eyes was met by pure defiance in Odessa's. As she moved towards the door, she tripped over something and almost lost her balance. She had to sidestep to regain her footing and keep from falling. Looking down to see what had tripped her, she almost dropped Kia when she saw the body of her husband lying in a pool of blood. Kia whimpered and buried her head in Odessa's shoulder. Odessa hugged the girl closer to her chest, making soft shushing noises as she tried to calm the little girl and possibly herself down. She had to get out of that room! Turning around, she bolted out the door and ran down the darkened hallway. _

_

* * *

_

"Ri? Rika, wake up!" a young man, about the age of nineteen called out, seemingly annoyed at being the one chosen to wake a young woman, who was currently asleep beneath a large oak tree. The girl didn't even stir. This seemed to annoy the boy even more. Eye twitching slightly, he clenched his fist and took a deep breath, trying to steady himself before he went off the deep end. It didn't do much, however, and he resorted to shaking the girl violently.

"Risikah, god damn it, WAKE UP!" he yelled, giving the girl one last hard shake. His efforts were rewarded when the girl suddenly snapped awake, a shocked, somewhat shaky gasp escaping from her lips as she jumped at the boys touch. He drew a sharp intake of breath when in less than two seconds later he found the blade of a silver dagger at his throat. He looked at the girl, shock evident on his face.

"Ri what the hell?" He asked in surprise.

As he watched her, he noticed that she was shaking violently, her eyelids looked heavy as she appeared to be still half asleep, and sweat trailed down her face. Her hand, however, was as steady as anything. He relaxed almost immediately as he realized what was wrong, and gently pushed back the hand holding the knife.

The girl looked up when he gently moved her hand away from his neck, and slowly the sleep, confusion, and fear melted from her eyes, quickly replaced by realization and a silent apology. She absently sheathed her knife, returning it to the leather pouch that hung from her belt. She took a deep shaky breath, trying to steady herself. The boy watched her for a moment. She looked so frightened, so small. He actually felt bad for her. She seemed to feel his gaze on her, and she looked up at him with crystal blue eyes.

"I'm so sorry Willam!" she whispered sadly. Her eyes changing from crystal blue, to a dark gray-blue. He smiled, that little trick, along with her usual red-blond hair, were what made her famous in their little village. She averted her gaze and looked down, frowning slightly. Willam said nothing for a long moment, then asked the question that was plaguing his mind, even though he was sure he already knew the answer.

"Another nightmare?" he asked. She tensed, head still down, and nodded solemnly. He lowered his gaze as well. That was all he needed to know. He didn't ask what the dream had been about, he didn't need to know, and, frankly, he didn't want to know.

Rika, or Risikah as she was called by most of their people, as well as the world around them, was his half sister, about four years younger than himself and his twin brother, Kristopher. When they were just children, their father had been murdered, and Rika was the one who found him. He didn't know the details, but he knew that she was badly beaten by the man who killed him. Lucien, their father's murderer, had been imprisoned, and then exiled early that same morning. He returned, however, later that night, taking Rika with him and selling her into slavery, she was barely five years old. There she was brutally abused for nearly seven years, until she was saved and brought back to them. Ever since then she had been plagued by nightmares, and he could only imagine what they were about. One thing was for sure: they were brutal.

To be honest, he was amazed at how little her brutal past had affected her. Sure a smirk had replaced her smile, and she was much colder than she use to be, but he was surprised that she had made it out, alive for that matter, but so much stronger and with her sanity intact. He had heard that most people- or slaves in this matter- that had gone through not even _half_ of what she had been through didn't even remember their own names!

He had been so absorbed in his contemplation that he didn't here Rika's question. Now, when he looked up, his dark green eyes were met by Rika's now amber colored eyes staring back at him. He cast her a nervous questioning glance. Amber eyes meant that she was quickly losing her patience and though it wasn't the worst color they could have turned, it meant he'd have to be careful of what he said, or things would quickly become dangerous.

"What?" he asked, trying to sound as innocent as possible. Her eye twitched, but they held their color. As long as they didn't turn red or black he'd be safe, but if they did….he gulped-he didn't want to think about that.

"What's going on? Where is everyone?" she asked, her tone suggesting that it wasn't the first time she had asked. He looked confused for a moment, then his face shown with realization as he remembered the reason he had come in the first place.

"We've got a problem." He stated calmly. She nodded, waiting for him to continue.

"It seems Nacola is on the move. Her forces have been advancing on us for quite a while now." He said, his tone icily serious. Rika swore under her breath.

"I sent Kaiei and Liam to scout the area around us, pick up any signs of how close they are. The rest are out setting up a perimeter." He stood up, turning to leave, he added over his shoulder "Alex wants to talk to you." He hesitated, waiting for her reply. She hesitated, once again averting her gaze. He watched her for a moment, she was still uneasy from the dream. After a few moments she nodded.

"I'll be there in a few seconds, let me just clean up a bit." He nodded and turned to leave.

Rika watched him go, until the thick morning mist hid his form from her view. After a few moments, she began to get ready for the new day, and the battle that would most likely ensue soon. She could already feel the tension in the air, the energy of an upcoming battle was almost suffocating. She shuddered, the nightmare still fresh in her mind. Sighing, she pushed the thought away and began to gather her things. She needed to get ready. After making sure she had everything, she made her way to the small lake they had made camp by.

After washing up in the cool water of the lake, she began to put on her attire for the day. She chose to where a deep red leather shirt that left most of her stomach bare. She also pulled on a pair of leather pants of much the same color that hugged her hips, showing off her curves. Finally she pulled on a pair of black leather lace-up boots, pulling them over her pants. After finishing lacing up the boots, she looked down at her remaining items. Assorted articles of clothing, a few pieces of jewelry, three leather- bound books, and of course, a variety of weapons- three silver daggers, two sias, a katana, a braided, black leather whip, and of course, her weapon of choice- an uncharacteristically thin sword- made up the small bundle within the leather sack she had carried with her.

She had taken the sword from her last hit. Made with beautiful craftsmanship; it was indeed a beautiful weapon, and one of her most prized possessions. The blade was made of silver, and forged from a magic similar to that of her peoples', with a dragon wrapped around an attacking tiger delicately etched in the fine silver. The hilt was made with a deep red-almost black- silver- called blood silver. A wolf head carved into the base, its green emerald eyes a striking contrast to the dark metal around it. The sword was unbelievably light, and she used it expertly, as she did with all her weapons.

She began to arm herself, attaching the weapons to various parts of her body: A dagger in each boot, the two sias at her back, her sword at her hip, along with her whip. After making sure her weapons were secure, she looked down at her remaining dagger. Frowning slightly, she tried to decide what to do with it. She couldn't afford to leave it behind- any weapon was needed on the battlefield, and she learned from experience that it may be the last weapon that could save your life- however, her outfit provided little space for much of anything, and being a mercenary, she made a habit of concealing her weapons.

After a few moments of figuring out what do with it, she finally found an answer. Strapping the dagger to her arm, she looked for something to conceal it. Digging through her clothes, she finally found what she was looking for. Two arm bands, the leather strap the same color as her outfit with black and red colored quilted silk material that hung from the leather to about an inch above her wrists. After she finished putting them on, she made her way in the direction her brother had gone.

As she made her way through the mist, she was once again reminded of her nightmare. That beating Lucien had given her that night- and all the other nights before for that matter-were nothing compared to the pain and torture she was subjected to over the next seven years. Hell, she'd even consider them love taps compared to the raw beatings Corico would give her, but the fact that it was the night her father was murdered, and the last night of her freedom, made the memory stick out painfully vivid in her mind. The thought of her father brought tears to her eyes, but she pushed them away. Tears brought weakness, and she would not stand for weakness, though, she doubted she could cry even if she wanted to; she had lost so much, suffered so much pain that she was just…cold inside.

Odessa must have told her father about Lucien's abuse. It was the only explanation as to how he found out. Rika had been amazed at Odessa's sudden and desperate attempt at saving her. Though she was never cruel to Rika, she had made it quite clear that she didn't except her as a daughter –or stepdaughter- or even as a member of her family. All she was to her was an ugly child, a mere half demon; a reminder of how her father had chosen a human over her.

Odessa was her father's first wife, the mother of Willam, Kristopher, Alexander, Aislin, Axel, Raelin, and Nyssa. A beautiful shinggrah – the great wolf demon of the European lands- with long, silky golden hair that cascaded down her shoulders to the middle of her back in gorgeous waves, crystal blue eyes, and a long, thin, muscular build, Risikah could not understand why her father had chosen a human over her. Apparently neither could Odessa, for she often sent cold glares in Risikah's direction. It was very rare for her to talk to her at all, let alone say her name, but that night…the desperation in her voice as she said her _name_ was what had snapped her out of the weary fog Lucien's beatings had caused her to feel.

Kianna…it had been so long since she was called by that name. After seven long years in the Vampiric slave trade, she was saved by a man named Kaleo. Kaleo was also a vampire, but one of the rare ones who despised the trade and who acted against it. He took her- after Corico practically threw her away, as it was illegal to stand in the way of an owner and his slave, and even ones such as Kaleo wouldn't interfere with someone's claim- and brought her to Emrick, one of the Elders of her people. Emrick took her in, treated her like a daughter, giving her a new name, and a new identity to replace the one that Corico had tainted, and to keep her from being traced; no one, except her family, new who she truly was. She became Risikah, no longer the princess of her people and rightful heir to the throne by the words of her father, but the mighty protector and savior of her people. A mercenary by night, a soldier by day, she was a cold blooded killer-or so she'd have them believe. The truth was; she'd do anything to protect her people, even if it meant using her skills to take on jobs, killing bounties for money to feed her people.

As she walked through the thickening fog, her thoughts once again fell upon her father. It hadn't lasted long, of course, her father's fling with Risikah's mother- if you could call it that- shortly after she was born, her mother had left, disappearing with out a trace, without a word to anyone, leaving her with nothing, not even a name as to who she was.

It hadn't mattered that much, or at least that's how she made it seem. She had her father's love, as well as her aunt's, and she always told herself that that was enough, all she would ever need. But the truth was she wanted a mother! She just couldn't understand why someone would leave their newborn baby, for any reason. There were rumors that she had another child- a son and also a half demon as well- but rumors were just that –rumors- and it was hard to decipher the truth from the lies, if there was any at all.

The mist became thicker with each step she took, until it had completely obscured her vision. This did not delay her, nor phase her in the least, however, as her keen nose told her all she needed to know, picking up every sent of the forest around her, and she was easily able to pick up the sent of her brother and the rest of her pack. She narrowly avoided walking into an overhanging branch as she weaved through the forest, dogging rocks, branches, and trees. Finally, after what seemed like hours, she was able to pick up the sounds of her friends and comrades. She relaxed as the familiar voices reached her ears, but then sighed in aggravation as the voices quickly turned into snarls and growls.

_ Err! God damn it! NOT TODAY! _She thought angrily, her unusual good mood quickly evaporating. Between the uneasy mood the nightmare had left her in, and the unease and gloom the day was already promising, she was by no means in the mood for their bull shit! Her pace quickened as her anger grew, and soon she was in the clearing where her troops were. Most were half changed into their wolf forms, others were either entirely wolf, or entirely human, but all were in a circle, surrounding something in the center. The growling and snarling came from the center, and combined with the cheering and screaming that the others were making, the sound was almost overbearing. She waited a moment, eyes twitching as they began to change colors, but remained unnoticed as the snarling, growling mass turned into something along the lines of a riot. Taking out her whip, she flicked it hard and violently into the air at her side. The sound of the crack echoed in the forest around them, as the silence settled in amongst her comrades. They turned their attention towards her, slowly parting the circle so she could move past them, revealing the two men that had been fighting. Numerous cuts and deep slash marks littered their bare chests. Though they looked painful, Risikah knew they probably didn't even notice them, as their kind had a high tolerance for pain, and by the time they'd change back into their human forms, the cuts would all but disappear.

It was completely silent as she surveyed the men in front of her. Some had already begun the change back into human form, their long hair shortening to its normal length, the fur on their chest slowly being replaced by skin. The cuts on the two men began to disappear as they too began to change back. All this she noted as she stared coldly at the group of men before her. They knew she was pissed even with out looking at her eyes. They could feel her temper flare out as the emotion mixed with her aura, prickling their skin and causing them to become uneasy. Her voice was cold as she spoke her anger out loud.

"You are all acting like a bunch of RABID DOGS!" she screamed the last two words, causing the men around her to flinch and lower their gazes as her temper found a new level, flaring out as her aura erupted –causing a tree to engulf in flames. Her gaze grew more icy as she walked slowly and threateningly towards them, aura crackling around her. They moved quickly out of her way, creating a path to the two now human men. She smiled, a cold threatening smirk that sent shivers down the backs of most of whom were unlucky enough to be the at the receiving end of one. The two just stood silently however, not looking at her, but not looking away either. Her smirk grew in amusement at their slight, yet obvious sign of disobedience, then she turned to the rest of the group.

"Where the HELL is Alexander?" she screamed. Not receiving an answer she walked slowly around the circle. "Is this how you act when no one is watching you!" she asked, her voice calmer this time, but still containing the same icy venom as before. "Look at you! Damn it! Is this what you do before a battle? Act like a bunch of puppies? No, even puppies are more behaved then you are!" This comment was answered with shamed murmurs as the group before her held their heads even further. She looked them over for a moment, then repeated her earlier question.

"Where are Alexander and the others?" They stood there in silence, as if she'd rip their heads off should any one speak up. She was starting to grow impatient once again when someone behind her wrapped their arms around her shoulders, causing her to jump.

"Right here." Someone said, their voice deep and smooth. She turned around, her bad mood evaporating as her eyes met those of her oldest brother, well, second oldest brother-her oldest brother died shortly after she came back to the castle.

"Alexander!" She called happily. Out of all her brothers, friends, and comrades around her, Alexander was the only person that completely understood her. She could talk to him about any thing, and he never judged her, and anyone could see that he adored her. Ever since she came back from the trade, they were as close as they could be, sharing a bond that was virtually unbreakable bond that even the most ignorant person could see.

If anyone thought it was odd that they shared such a strong bond, no one spoke it aloud; as everyone treated each other as brothers and sisters. Everyone knew that loosing his sister, the princess Kianna, devastated Alexander, and to them, it seemed that Risikah had become a replacement to Alexander. Though know one knew who she really was, they understood Alexander's closeness with her, and accepted her themselves. It never occurred to anyone that their relationship was exactly what it appeared to be, a bond between a little sister and her big brother.

Alexander's gaze was filled with amusement as he looked over the shamed faces of his troops. He turned his gaze once again to his sister.

"Don't you think you were a bit harsh, Risikah?" He asked in mock disapproval. She glared at him as she shoved his arm in a sisterly way. He laughed and shoved her back. The others watched on in growing amusement at the shoving match between the two. Finally they separated, laughing lightly.

"So, what's going on? Where is everyone?" she asked, her bad mood completely gone. Alexander's face quickly lost its light, happy tone; the mischievousness quickly being replaced by something resembling fear and worry, but much more severe. Risikah could not put a name to the feelings that were now playing out on her brother's face; all she could do was wait for his reply.

"Follow me." He gestured her to follow behind him as he led the way down the path he had just come out of. She began to follow him when she remembered the men behind her. Some were snickering; others wore a smug look on their faces. She glared back at them.

"Get back to work." She said in a tone that aloud no contradictions. She began to once again follow Alexander, shouting over her shoulder as she did so.

"Oh, and Cain, Owen, put your shirts on would you?" She heard the others snicker as she continued to follow her brother through the woods where the others were apparently suppose to be waiting.

The urgency of her brother's movements began to fill her with a growing sense of foreboding. Her worry grew until it threatened to take control of her rational side, and she fought valiantly to keep it under control. She wondered what could be making her brother so nervous. Could Nacola really be that much of a threat? Sure, her reputation was intimidating, but wasn't hers just as admirable?

Ever since she was brought back to the castle, she trained as hard as she could; refusing to remain weak. Forsaking the kind disposition that had once made her Kia, she became the hard, emotionless assassin, Risikah. She was strong and ruthless, earning her many identities along the way. Names such as the Bloody Princess and the Black Lady were only a few that she earned, the nicknames varying from place to place, but all meant the same thing- The Lady Risikah- and just the whisper of one struck fear into those who heard it.

Nacola's reputation was just as fearsome and well known, if not more. A mercenary as well, she had apparently forsaken her solitary life to work for and fight beside her people- The Ta- Risha, the great tiger clan of the Asian lands; the very people Risikah's own tribe was battling fiercely.

Risikah didn't know how the war started; she doubted anyone remembered any more. It had been raging for century's now. Risikah only knew of one time an attempt was made to end it. Risikah's- or Kianna's- grandfather, then the leader of the Shinggrah clan, married the Empress of the Ta-Risha clan. That was back when both clans still lived in Europe and Asia; before they had to flee their homelands from the violence the humans began to inflict on both their kinds. Her father was the official peace offering- born with both Shinggrah and Ta- Risha blood flowing through his veins. However, shortly after her father was born, tensions began again, and after he turned eighteen, both of his parents were assassinated. Around that time both tribes moved their people to this land, hoping things would be better. It wasn't. Shortly after her people moved, her father had a "fling" with Kianna's mother, and shortly after she was born, things started to heat up between the two clans, as well as the humans, and the tribe elders cast a spell on all her people- casting them in a sleep that lasted for thirty seven years in the hopes things would be resolved.

For a while it worked. Things were quiet for the next few years. (At least the one's she was there for) She came back to her homeland however, only to find out that her older sister Aislin and her oldest brother Axel were killed, and her people being slaughtered in what could only be described as a blood bath. That's when she decided to become a mercenary; training hard in everything she could. She learned different styles of fighting, as well as the different uses of every weapon.

She followed her brother through the thick vegetation, neither of them speaking. Just when she thought the forest would never end, the tree line gave way to a small clearing overlooking a rocky cliff. Boulders and large rocks littered the ground, and upon them sat her friends, all in a circle waiting for her and her brother to join them.

She walked behind her brother, passing her comrades as they made their way to the center of the circle. As she walked by a cluster of five boys, she heard someone whistle.

"Dressed- to- kill!" A young man with shaggy shoulder length brown hair sniggered. She turned around and glared at him.

"Shut up Liam!" She said with a smirk.

He smirked back and winked at her as she turned around and once again made her way to the center of the circle. She sat on a large rock next to a girl with long, wavy blonde hair.

"You're gonna attract unwanted attention to yourself wearing something like that" the girl stated as Risikah sat down, then she laughed, "Or is that the idea?" Risikah smiled.

"Well, i-it distracts the enemies!" she said trying to act innocent. "At least… the guys!" she added.

"Guys _are_ easily distracted." The girl agreed. They both laughed until Kristopher walked by. Risikah smirked as she saw the girl blush and turn away.

"So Kaiei, what's going on between you and my brother?" she asked, her tone teasing. Her grin grew wider as her friend's face turned an even deeper shade of crimson.

"Nothing!" Kaiei said hurriedly.

"Mmmmhmmm, suuuure!" Risikah replied, then burst into laughter at the look her friend shot her.

Kaiei's eye twitched as her friend continued to laugh. After a few moments she shoved Risikah, sending her flying off the rock she sat on, then continued to sit as if nothing had happened.

Risika sat on the ground, looking shocked for a moment, before she once again claimed her seat.

"Gee, love you too." She said to Kaiei's smugg look.

Everyone was silent when Alexander walked to the center of the circle. He looked around for a moment before motioning everyone to join him. Kaiei and Risikah exchanged worried glances as they walked closer to Alexander.

"Alex, what's wrong?" Risikah asked quietly.

Alexander looked up at Liam and a red-headed boy that stood next to him. They in turn nodded and began to kneel in the ground, drawing in a patch of dirt.

"This was Nacola's position yesterday." He said pointing to a symbol he had just drawn. "Now, we thought they would bed down for the night right? Big mistake! This was them four hours ago, two hours ago, and one hour ago." He said, motioning to the apparent positions of Nacola's troops.

"This is our position now." He said, pointing to another symbol in the dirt, alarmingly close to that of Nacola's troops. Alexander frowned as whispers broke the silence. Then he asked in a tense tone the question that was on everyone's mind.

"How long until they're on top of us?"

Liam frowned, "One, maybe two hours."

It was silent for a long time, even the birds were quiet, as they looked to Alexander, waiting for his instructions. Finally he spoke.

"What do you think we should do?" He asked, addressing the entire group. When no one answered he looked to the red-headed boy, who, throughout the whole explanation remained silent.

"Kegan, what do you want to do?"

Kegan paused a moment, as if afraid of speaking his thoughts. Finally he kneeled back in the dirt, drawing another symbol.

"This is Acrit, a small village near the river. If we bail out now…it'll be a massacre." He explained slowly, almost sorrowfully. Alexander nodded.

"Anyone else have anything to say?"

There was another long pause until another voice spoke up.

"We can't just leave them to fend for themselves" a black haired man said. There were murmurs of agreement, and Alexander nodded.

"Then it's agreed. We'll set up a perimeter and then wait. When they get close enough, that's when we'll ambush them." He stood silently once again for a moment, looking over the faces before him with a mixture of sadness and fear, then he spoke up.

"I'm not going to lie to you. We're in for a long fight. Nacola's got thirty troops to our fifteen. We're down by half, and I'm telling you now it's going to be hard- maybe impossible to win this one. We may all die in the end, but I promise you that I will be with you until the end. We haven't come this far to just roll over and give up now. So what'd you say? Shall we give them a fight they'll remember?"

"YEAH!" everyone shouted, throwing their weapons in the air. Then, with Alexander's word, everyone set out to do their jobs- scouting the land beyond, setting traps, and scoping out the area for possible ideal battlefields and hiding spaces.

* * *

"Inuyasha, SIT!" A woman's voice echoed in the still air. Her scream was immediately followed by a loud crash as whoever she was yelling at made contact with the ground.

"Damn it Kagome! WOULD YOU STOP DOING THAT!" a young man- around the age of eighteen by the looks of him- said, trying to yell back. His tone lost most of the sharpness, however, as his voice was muffled by the mouthful of dirt and grass he had acquired when he smashed into the ground. His long white hair flowed down over his red outfit, and if you looked closely, you could see a pair of white dog ears sticking up through his hair. He was quite obviously a demon- a white dog demon by the looks of him- or at least a half demon.

Three others stood nearby, looking at the young half demon with bored expressions, as if this was a common occurrence. A young woman,- a demon slayer by the looks of her weapon- a young man most obviously a monk, and a tiny fox-demon child with a fluffy tail stood behind the girl called Kagome, all shaking their heads at the half demon's misfortune.

"Why do you have to be so mean, Inuyasha!" Kagome asked in an irritated voice.

"WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BE SO PIG HEADED!" Inuyasha screamed back.

The eyes of the three observing the argument widened, and they took about five steps back, giving room for the oncoming outburst that was sure to come. With good reason too, as no sooner had they moved, Kagome exploded as her anger took on a new level. The birds took to the sky in fear as Kagome screamed out, unleashing her anger onto the misfortunate half demon.

* * *

Sitting in a rocky clearing, waiting for the oncoming battle, Risikah and her comrades did what they could to keep themselves busy, as the thought of the upcoming battle made everyone one uneasy and on edge. Risikah herself had buried her nose in one of her leather bound books, seemingly dead to the world, that is, until an exceptionally loud shout shook her out of her own world, disrupting her reading. She jumped; almost falling off of the rock she was sitting on, and turned her head in the direction of the scream. It was so loud; birds took to flight in fear. It apparently roused the others from their duties as well, as everyone else looked up and stared at the frightened birds now clouding the sky with puzzled looks.

"What the hell was that!" Risikah asked to no one in particular. The others stared on, barely shrugging as they too wondered that same question.

"Sounded like a scream! Wonder if everything's alright…" Someone said, but Risikah shook her head.

"No, it sounded more angry than sad…" She replied, barely noticing as Kristopher stood next to her.

"Reminds me of you." He said in a nonchalant tone, glancing down at his sister to see if she heard him. She did. Her eye twitched as she frowned, smacking his arm as she turned away from him and went back to her reading. The others followed her, going back to whatever they had been doing before, forgetting the mysterious shout as if it hadn't happened in the first place.

* * *

well, there it is, chapter one! read and review please 


	2. Not as it seems

Disclaimer: Inuyasha and any other character in this story that belongs to the anime are quite obviously not mine. However, Risikah and other original characters, as well as the plot ARE mine, so please ask before taking.

Few, chapter 2 finally up and ready to read, and I'd like to thank Misty, Mizuu, and anyone else who helped me with it, I honestly couldn't do this without you guys. also, many thanks to Shel The InuYasha Stalker for the review, even though for some reason not to show it...whatever, enough ramblings eh? read and review please, now on with the story!

* * *

Risikah sat on her rock sharpening her sword, lost in her own world. She barely noticed when Alexander came up beside her.

"Hey," he said, and smirked as Risikah jumped; almost falling off of the rock she sat on. She looked up at him and his smile grew.

"A little jumpy today are we?" he asked, his tone teasing. She ignored his tone and sheathed her sword.

"What's up?" she asked, looking at him. He sighed, and, sitting next to her, pulled something out of his pocket. She looked at the package curiously. In his hand was a tiny box made of a deep, almost black, crimson cherry wood covered with a pale blue silk, with silver trim and latch. He handed it to her and watched as she hesitantly opened it.

Inside, resting on black velvet was a beautiful silver chain with small, deep purple stones-probably amethyst- connecting the delicate chain after every inch. Dangling from the delicate silver was a pale pink stone, about the size of her thumb nail and polished smooth. Risikah gasped as she beheld the necklace, and she abruptly turned to Alexander.

"Alexander…" she began, but he interrupted her, taking the necklace from her hands as he began putting it on her neck. She moved her wild hair so he could see what he was doing and waited patiently for his explanation.

"This is a special stone. It holds great power…it will protect you." He stated as he was finally able to close the clasp. Finally finding her voice she turned to him.

"You're really worried about this battle aren't you?" she asked quietly. He looked away for a moment, and then turned to look at her directly in the eyes. The intensity she found in them frightened her, and she took a sharp intake of breath.

"Just promise me you won't take it off. I won't lose you again." He said quietly, though his voice held the same intensity his eyes showed. For a moment she didn't know what to say. She knew he was referring to what happened to her when she was younger, and she wanted to tell him it wasn't his fault, that he couldn't have possibly done anything to help her, but somehow she knew he wouldn't accept that. He blamed himself for what she went through, and she knew nothing she could say would change that. After looking into his turquoise eyes for a moment longer, they're intensity never wavering, she nodded.

"I promise." She whispered. He smiled and after a moment walked back to the others. She sat for a long moment, reflecting on their conversation. Absentmindedly she touched the jewel he had given her. For a brief moment she wondered what its name was, but quickly pushed the thought away as she heard Liam's rich, deep voice shatter the thick, uneasy air that surrounded them. Apparently he and the others had gotten restless- to the point where sharpening there weapons, reading, and such ceased to keep their minds off the upcoming battle. Now his voice rang out, singing a familiar tune, one that Risikah was quite fond of.

I'm not the one who's so far away

When I feel the snakebite enter my ve-eins

Never did I wanna be here again,

Risikah walked over to them, adding her own voice to Liam's as she sat next to him.

**And I don't remember why I came**

Kegan had taken his drums from the cart, and many of the others had taken their own instruments, and soon their voices as well as their music filled the air.

**Candles raise my desire, **

**Why I'm so far away,**

**No more meaning to my life,**

**No more reason to stay**

**Freezing, feeling, breathe in, breath i-in**

**I'm coming back again,**

Because music was such a huge part of her people's society, they were gifted with the ability to manipulate, control, and create music out of thin air. This time however, they left the music as it was, in its natural form, a form that was common in these times, if not in these parts, only using their instruments and not their abilities to change and add to the sound.

**I'm not the one who's so far away,**

**When I feel the snakebite enter my ve-eins, **

**Never did I wanna be here again,**

**And I don't remember why I came**

She leaned back on the rock she sat on, singing the next verse as if nothing mattered except for this song. For a moment, time stood still, and she had no cares in the world.

**Hazing clouds rain on my head, **

**Empty thoughts fill my ears, **

**Find my shade by the moonlight, **

**Why my thoughts aren't so clear,**

**Deemons, dreeaming,**

**Breathe-in- breathe i-in,**

**I'm coming back again,**

**I'm not the one who's so far away,**

**When I feel the snakebite enter my ve-eins, **

**Never did I want to be here again,**

**And I don't remember why I came**

**Voodoo, voodoo, Voodoo, voodoo,**

**I'm not the one who's so far away, **

**I'm not the one who's so far away, **

**I'm not the one who's so far away.**

**

* * *

**

"Inuyasha, you really shouldn't have said that." the tiny fox demon shook his head while he chastised the sulking older half demon, whose head was now covered with bumps. The group had only been walking a short time since Inuyasha and Kagome's fight, which still seemed fresh in everyone's mind, especially Kagome who walked briskly and somewhat angrily in front with her bike in tow. Inuyasha's brow twitched as he turned sharply to face the fox demon.

"SHUT UP SHIPPO!" Inuyasha yelled sending the little demon scampering off to Kagome's side. Inuyasha grumbled and kept walking. They were on a narrow path that was almost over-grown, obviously rarely traveled, at least by humans.

Inuyasha stiffened; the forest was thick here, with numerous hiding places for an awaiting demon ready to attack. He sniffed the air, trying to catch the sent of anyone who might try to do them harm. Nothing; the only demons he could smell hadn't been here for months, possibly years. He relaxed slightly when he realized this, though not enough to be caught off guard.

After a moment he continued to follow the others, when his ears twitched, catching sounds off in the distance. Voices…drums…and an assortment of other instruments were coming from somewhere deep within the forest, veering off to the east of the path they were now traveling. He stopped for a moment, ears twitching, as he strained his ears trying to decipher the words in the voices carried on the wind. The others stopped as well when they realized Inuyasha wasn't following them anymore.

"Inuyasha, what is it?" The demon slayer, a young woman named Sango, asked.

"Ssssh! Listen." Inuyasha whispered. The others looked at him oddly, but listened anyways.

_**Voodoo, Voodoo….**_

"Who'd be singing in a place like this?" Miroku, the monk, asked to no one in particular.

"Dunno…" Inuyasha replied as he slowly looked at Kagome. Kagome stood still for a moment, then, without a word, began to walk off the edge of the path and strait into the thick vegetation that surrounded them.

"Kagome! What the heck do you think you're doing?" Inuyasha called out angrily. Kagome barely turned her head as she glared at him.

"Shut up Inuyasha! There's a jewel shard coming from the direction of the singing, now are you coming or not?" She shouted back at him, as she continued to walk through the forest. Inuyasha hesitated, then began to follow her into the dense forest. Miroku and Sango turned to each other and shrugged as they too began to follow Kagome.

* * *

Risikah slumped farther into the rock she sat on- a large boulder with a large indent, making it the perfect seat- and sighed impatiently. She hated this long, anxious waiting before the battle. Battles rarely made her feel this uneasy. Only harsh battles had the knack of filling the air with foreboding, and with the air around her and her comrades as stifling as it was, this one promised to be an exceptionally long, hard one to fight. The song had succeeded in relieving some of the tension she had felt earlier, but now that it was over it seemed that she would now be subjected to the onslaught of anxiety. She growled in frustration when she realized she could not fight the growing sensation. Kaiei sat next to her and sighed in frustration as well, obviously wanting an end to the unsettling air of unease that constantly grew as the hours passed as much as Risikah. Risikah turned to acknowledge her friend, and the two shared a knowing glance.

"Ugg! I hate waiting like this! It makes me feel so uneasy!" Kaiei complained angrily. Risikah nodded in agreement.

" I know! Sometimes I wonder which is worse, the battle itself, or the waiting before hand." Risikah growled as she stretched, lazily sliding off her rock. Kaiei stretched as well, reaching her arms to the sky as she arched her back, then fell back heavily on her rock, crossing her legs and arms aggravatedly, a mock pout forming on her pretty face as she hastily voiced her opinion.

"Definitely the wait, no contest! At least in the battle we know what we've gotten ourselves into, instead of this constant unknowing." Risikah smirked at her friend. There certainly wasn't any mistaking _her_ aggravation!

"Yeah, good point. Plus we get some action. I've been needing to unleash some pent up energy!" Risikah grinned. Kaiei laughed lightly and Risikah smiled back as she noticed that some of the tension had left her friend's eyes, even if it was briefly.

"Risikah, you always know how to make me feel better." Kaiei sighed happily. Risikah smirked back.

"Hey, at least I'm good for something!" She said nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders. Kaiei smiled as she replied.

"You know you're not just good for that." she said, squeezing her friend's shoulder. Risikah smirked as she replied.

"I should hope not! If you had agreed I would have skinned you alive!" She teased. Kaiei smiled mischievously.

"Well, I _was_ going to say that not only do you make me laugh, but you also do a fairly good job in keeping Liam in line. I can't think of anything else…" she said, her smirk growing as Risikah tried to look hurt.

"Kaiei, I'm hurt! What about that time I saved you from getting your ass kicked by that badger demon?" Risikah asked.

"First, it was a fox demon, and second, _I _saved _you_!" Kaiei corrected haughtily, grinning at Risikah's obvious aggravation.

"What, is the Black Lady, Risikah pouting?" she teased, grinning wider as Risikah's scowl grew.

"Pouting doesn't become you, Risikah." A new voice pointed out, causing both women to turn to the new individual now walking towards them. Kristopher smirked at his sister, and Risikah glared back at him.

"Oh shut up Kris! I don't remember asking _you_ to interrupt our conversation. Who invited you to join us anyway?" She asked angrily, her eyes changing to a deep purple color. Kristopher's eyes widened at his sister's unexpected hostility.

"A little snappy today aren't we." he replied icily, pointedly glaring at her. She seemed to settle down a bit, but still held her icy tone when she spoke again.

"What do you want?" she asked calmly, though her voice was still frosty. Kris scowled, but kept his voice even despite his growing impatience.

"Absolutely nothing." He replied coldly. He was by no means in the mood for her attitude, but he chose not to take part in her little game of ' who can argue the longest?'. Seeing her temper seething under the surface, invisible to most people, but crystal clear to those who knew her well, he was very sure that she'd win it this time anyways. Seeing her eyebrow raise suspiciously, he realized that she knew he was lying, and glancing at Kaiei, he quickly added his true intentions before she started to make inquiries of her own.

"Just passing by. Alex wanted me to check on the traps before things get started." He explained. Risikah's eyes lit up at the very thought of something to do, and she almost jumped on him as she hastily asked.

"Can I come?" She begged, grabbing his arm.

"No." He said simply and began to turn away before she had a chance to argue with him. Unfortunately he wasn't fast enough.

"Come on! I can't just sit here and do nothing! I'M GOING CRAZY!" She pleaded. He just shook his head and pulled his arm from her grip.

"Alex wants everyone else to stay put." He told her. He heard her growl softly and smiled.

"Patience is a virtue, Risikah." He added. She scowled and glared back at him.

"A virtue I seem to be void of at the moment." She muttered, which earned her a snort of amused laughter from her brother as he turned to walk away. Before he went on his way, however, he caught Kaiei's eye and pointedly winked at her, causing a deep crimson to creep up her cheeks as she shyly smiled back at him. Satisfied with her reaction, he turned and continued on his way. Risikah looked from Kris to Kaiei, a smirk forming on her face, but before she could say a word, Kaiei turned her attention back to Risikah, the crimson had completely evaporated from her face, replaced by a sly, mischievous grin.

"So, where were we….ah yes, Liam." She began the smirk on her face growing as she watched her friend's reaction. Risikah's eyes grew wide as Kaiei mentioned Liam. Liam was two years older than Kaiei and herself, flirtatious, and hardly showed any subtlety in showing his admiration- if you could call it that- of his little sister's best friend. Risikah herself was a little more cautious. Liam flirted with almost every woman he met- it was just the way he was- and it made it difficult to tell if his feelings and actions were truly sincere, or if she was just another girl to show off to.

Risikah refused to be "just another girl", being led around in circles for nothing. Only when Liam proved to her that his intensions were true, would she even consider him. Still, she had to admit the attention he gave her _was_ flattering, and it was rather interesting to see his reaction when she spat back a snide remark or flirted back. To her it was just a friendship- a strange, sometimes violent one though it was, it was a friendship nonetheless- nothing more, nothing less….as of now at least. But could the rest of the pack see it as more than that? This thought caused her eyes to darken and her brows furrow. This was _not_ good. Not good at all. She did not work her ass off for the past couple of years to earn the respect of her fellow comrades for them to start thinking of her as an incompetent love-sick puppy!

Kaiei's laughter drew her out of her thoughts, causing her to look over at her friend who was all but on the ground gasping between giggles.

"You should see the look on your face, Ri! I never thought anyone could make that face!" Kaiei said through her laughter. Risikah's frown grew as her eye twitched.

"I'm glad you find this so amusing, Kai." Risikah said sarcastically, not even bothering to hide her irritation. Kaiei let her laughter die to a chuckle as she looked at her friend.

"Sorry, it's just, I'm trying to imagine you and Liam together," she broke into another burst of laughter before continuing. "So, Ri, do you tell him _everything_?" She asked with a mischievous giggle. Risikah growled for a moment before an idea hit her and she smiled mischievously at Kaiei.

"Well, almost everything. I have yet to tell him about a little…'fling' going on between a _certain _someone, and one of my dear brothers. But I'm sure he'd be ever so thrilled to hear about it. You do know how much we like to gossip. Hold on, let me see if I can find him." Risikah said in a dismissive air as she began to walk towards Liam who sat perched on a rock, laughing with a few of the others. She tried to hide the smirk that was slowly starting to form as she watched with mock disinterest as Kaiei's expression went from a smug, mischievous smirk to a look of pure horror at Risikah's threat in less than two seconds.

"Y-you wouldn't!" She stammered, moving towards Risikah and catching her arm. Risikah smiled triumphantly and sighed exaggeratedly.

"Oh, I guess not. But I wouldn't mention this again or else I may get ideas." She said casually. Kaiei sighed with relief and slumped back on her rock. Risikah watched her with a new interest, a question forming in her head. She sat down next to Kaiei and looked at her more seriously.

"So I take it that you haven't told Liam about you and Kris yet?" she asked her friend. Kaiei looked at her in disbelief.

"Are you kidding me? If he found out he'd kill Kris then beat me into a bloody pulp!" She said with a shudder. "And I don't know about you, but I'd rather keep the use of my limbs thanks." She added, almost sarcastically and Risikah smiled at her friend's sense of humor.

* * *

Standing on a rock overlooking a slow moving river stood a young woman around the age of eighteen. Golden eyes missed nothing as they watched the sun dancing off of the water. A frog jumped and swam over to the rock she was standing on and a turtle sunned itself on an old log.

The young woman smiled softly at the serenity around her. No one would have known that a great battle was about to erupt, unsettling the peaceful stillness of the river.

"Lady Nacola!" A voice called, shattering the calm illusion. The woman turned around slowly, sighing softly to herself at the loss of such peace. Her face however was calm and neutral, and her voice betrayed no irritation as she acknowledged the young woman running up to her.

The girl's frame was small, yet it held an air of power and strength. Her long, golden hair hung to her mid-back, and shifted gently with every move she made, and if she moved a certain way, you could just make out the slim black markings that accented her hair. In this lighting for instance, you could clearly see the spots as they fell across her golden hair. Her bright green eyes shown with urgency as she ran swiftly to Nacola.

"My Lady," she said, bowing respectfully to the other woman as she tried to catch her breath, "everything is prepared. We're ready to strike on your word." Nacola nodded in approval.

"Thank you Sifkah. Now I want you to take fifteen to twenty men. You will attack the patrol. I will take the rest to Acrit." Nacola said as she began to once again turn toward the river.

"My Lady?" Sifkah asked, clearly puzzled.

"Sifkah, you are my second in command, you wanted your chance to prove yourself, did you not?" Nacola said coolly. Sifkah nodded slowly and Nacola continued. "Then I expect you to take this opportunity. There is a woman in that patrol that concerns me."

"Who?" Sifkah asked with growing curiosity.

"A mercenary by the name of Risikah." Nacola explained as she turned to watch the other girl, searching for a reaction. She smiled when Sifkah's composure remained calm despite the alarm she was most likely feeling. It seemed she had made the correct decision in making Sifkah her second in command.

Though she was much younger than what was expected for one with such a position, Sifkah had shown a great deal of potential, being much more level-headed than most of her charges even twice her age. Many doubted her abilities however, thinking her too young to understand the full responsibilities her title gave her. Nacola saw her potential however, and decided to give her a chance. And she seemed to have been rewarded.

A leader had to be calm when faced with any type of adversity; if troops noticed that their leader was uneasy, they'd become nervous and clumsy, which could ultimately lead to their deaths.

"The Black Lady!" Sifkah whispered in awe. Nacola nodded. "But isn't she an outsider? I didn't think the Shinggrah aloud outsiders into their armies! Especially into an elite force like the Soldié!" Sifkah added, visibly confused.

"Normally they don't, but apparently she's gotten pretty close to Adricks's sons, especially Alexander. He seems to treat her as if she were their lost sister, Kianna. Her background must have also proven useful. She's a hard fighter, and a good mercenary. I've seen her work; she should not be taken lightly." Nacola said with a hint of admiration in her voice. Sifkah watched her leader curiously. Risikah must have been powerful for Nacola to speak so highly of her.

"That's why I need you to lead the attack. Your skills will be very useful in this battle. The men _will_ follow you without question Sifkah. They are yours to command." Sifkah glanced down for a moment, stunned briefly from Nacola's unexpected praise. After a moment she looked up at her leader, her green eyes shining with pride.

"I thank you My Lady. I'll lead our men to victory!" she said proudly, and with Nacola's nod, she turned and headed back to her men. Nacola watched her go and sighed as she once again turned back to the peaceful atmosphere of the river.

"Such a shame that such serene beauty must be shattered by horrible pain and death." She whispered wistfully, and with one final sigh, she turned and followed Sifkah back to her camp.

* * *

Inuyasha weaved through the trees, Kagome on his back, as he ran towards the direction the singing had come from. The others followed close behind on Kilala, Sango's fire cat demon. As they ran through the forest, Inuyasha became aware of the slight prickling of his skin. Something was definitely going to happen-something big. He began to slow down as the singing began to fade, unsure of where to go. There was no breeze to carry a sent for him to follow, and his ears could pick up no other sounds besides the various chirping of birds. Kagome seemed to guess what he was thinking and whispered in his ear.

"Off to the right. It's faint, but I can still sense the jewel shard in that direction." Inuyasha nodded and continued to run; ignoring his growing sense that something was wrong.

* * *

Risikah thrust her blade into the gut of her attacker; a young man with dark red hair and light golden eyes that had come at her with his sword.

The battle had erupted not long ago. With no breeze to carry their scents, the enemy forces had advanced on them almost virtually undetected, catching them by surprise, but not unprepared. The battle ensued with full force, both sides choosing to fight in their human forms as it gave them easy access and control of their powers.

Rika wiped her blade on her pants and looked around. Her troops were evenly matched it seemed, though the enemy had a few more troops than they had, they matched strength for strength. She watched her troops fighting with the enemy, moving, weaving, lunging; just like a sort of dance, a deadly dance.

She let her face twitch into a sadistic smile. _This_ was what she lived for; the fast paced world of battle, the thrill, the adrenaline racing through her veins, the rush…this was the only place Kia couldn't follow her-the one place her where her past couldn't haunt her- the one place where Kia was truly dead. True, Risikah had done her best to destroy all traces of Kianna-and she had pretty much succeeded- but sometimes, if she was left alone to think, a few traces of Kia would rise to the surface of her subconscious, haunting her with flashbacks of her past and nagging her with guilt for all the blood that now stained her hand. Kia was not a killer, but Risikah was, and that was exactly why they could never exist together, but on the battlefield, she didn't have to worry about it.

Risikah loved battles, loved them with every cell of her body, with her very being. It was just you and your opponent, taking part in a dance of Death. All energy was focused on survival, all instincts to their maximum; trying to predict the enemy's moves, as well as executing your own. This left no time for contemplation, no time to think.

Still, no matter how much she loved to fight, she couldn't shake the feeling that this battle, this _war_ was pointless, and there was nothing she hated more than fighting meaningless battles. This, however, was not the time to think about that.

Another man, this one with silky black hair-most likely a panther- came charging at her, katana and a smaller blade-possibly a kodachi- held high above his head in an attacking motion. Risikah turned out of the way, causing the young man to stumble as he tried to regain his footing to try the attack again. She completed her twirl and brought her elbow down hard to the back of his neck before he could recover, crippling him for the rest of the fight. She did not, however, kill him off. She was not without mercy, which may have been her greatest strength, or her greatest weakness. Either way she believed in honor, and to strike a killing blow to this boy would not sit well with her later. He was defeated, and that was enough for her, for she did not kill needlessly, and she did not kill those who were defenseless. Though this man was her enemy, now he was unarmed and unable to fight: her definition of defenseless if nothing else.

She turned around, sword gleaming in the sun. She inwardly frowned- the sun would be setting soon, and though it wouldn't make fighting impossible, it would surely make things more complicated. To make matters worse, there had been no sign of Nacola. This fact made her uneasy. Half of Nacola's troops were missing as well, making things very dangerous, and though Rika could not pick up any sent of them, the fact that they could be nearby alarmed her. She knew that once the sun went down, Nacola could ambush them. She had to find Alex and tell him of her concern, not that he probably hadn't thought of it already.

She searched the raging mass of fighting men and women for the face of her brother, finally finding him near the edge of the clearing. He was fighting a young woman with blond, spotted hair. Both it seemed were doing rather well for themselves. Alex wasn't backing down, matching her attacks with his own. It seemed that neither of them were taking it very seriously though. It was as if they were just testing each other, not really pushing themselves to the limit, but sizing each other up, as if this battle was nothing more than a game to them.

She saw her brother's eyes glint with amusement as he smiled mischievously, saying something to the woman he was fighting. He must have struck a nerve, for her eyes grew wide and she wrenched the hand he had just caught mid-swing out of his grip and attacked more viciously. Alexander laughed and dodged the blade as it slashed at his neck.

Risikah didn't know what to think! Was this really the same Alex who had been so serious just before this had started, who was so uneasy at the very mention of the battle? Slightly taken aback, she slowly turned around and let herself fall back into the fighting mass around her.

Somehow she made her way to Kaiei's side. The girl was struggling to overtake another raven-haired man, seemingly finding it a bit difficult. Kaiei had just barely managed to dodge his blade as he lunged forward when Risikah intervened and stabbed the man in the stomach. Sputtering, he fell to the ground with a thud. Kaiei shot her friend a thankful smile and the two made their way, slashing and lunging, through the center of the fight.

"How're we doing?" Risikah asked her friend breathlessly.

"Fairly well, we haven't lost anyone yet to my knowledge." Kaiei answered a bit absentmindedly as she kept her eyes on the fighting mass before her.

"Good." Risikah sighed. She didn't want to lose anymore people. She returned her attention to the chaos around her.

"So, I guess this means we're not going through with the rest of the plan." She stated more than asked.

The original plan was to ambush the enemy and eventually lead them into the traps they had set in various parts of the thick forest. Though the enemy had made the first move, it didn't completely foil the entire plan. Rika had thought they'd still go through with the rest of it, but orders to do so had never come.

Kaiei shrugged almost lazily as she wiped her blade on her pants after running it through an attacking woman.

"Dunno, if Alex wants to go through with it, then he'll give the order." She stated as if it were common knowledge that Rika should have thought of herself. Risikah frowned as she prepared to defend herself as a brown haired woman tried to deliver a blow to her head. She ducked as the blade whizzed by and immediately launched an attack of her own. Tearing the sais from her back, she sprang at the girl. The woman immediately defended herself, but it wasn't enough, and when Kaiei joined the fray seconds after, the girl found herself overpowered as well as outnumbered.

Glancing wildly from one girl to the other, the young woman hesitated before finally charging at Rika. Rika raised her weapons as soon as she caught the glimpse of the young woman's movements and slashed at her arm. The woman screamed as the magic from the blade seared her arm, and backed off. Risikah wiped off the blade and looked around once again.

The enemy was quickly loosing ground, with many either dead or injured, their retreat was almost inevitable, and by the looks of the tattered and torn troops, it would be soon. Rika heard Kaiei's footsteps as her friend walked up to her, sheathing her blades in the process.

"Looks like it's gonna be over soon." She whispered. Risikah nodded as she looked on, but inwardly she wasn't so sure. Something didn't feel right. This had been too easy. It couldn't have been the terrible battle her instincts had warned her about. The tension in the forest made the air so thick that it was almost suffocating, and that only happened with an excruciatingly hard battle. Even Alexander had been anxious, yet he seemed thoroughly at ease just moments ago. Could her instincts have been wrong? No, that rarely ever happened.

Though as she looked on and watched the enemy retreat and disappear into the forest, she couldn't help but wonder what the _hell_ was going on.

"Guess it's over." Kaiei said, and she began to walk down the small hill they were on to the rest of their comrades.

"Yeah." Risikah agreed softly, but deep within her something stirred, making the hair at the base of her neck rise and her skin prickle. The warning in her head continued to nag at her, telling her something was dangerously wrong. This was _way_ too easy, and as she followed her friend down the hill, she thought with a shudder,

'_This isn't over_.'

* * *

Ok, there it is.The song in this chapter is called Voodoo by Godsmack, and if you didn't figureit out already, regular text Liam, bold Risikah's voice and later the rest of the troop, and I tried to make it look less like lyrics and more like they were actually singing it.I also took the liberty of fixing a few (not all) of the mistakes in the first chapter if anyone cares,lol, though after two hours of trying to fix them, I ended up having to take down the whole damn thing because I seem to have angered my account somehow, lol. Anyways, I'm not exactly sure if I like how this turned out, it really was just something to do in Creative Writing class so I looked like I was doing something, lol. I do know where this is going, that is, i have an idea of how I want this to turn out, it's just...getting there that seems to be giving me grief sigh so in that respect, I suppose I should warn you. I realize I have left it off as a cliffy, and I appologize, I do have a slight idea of how ch.3 will go, but I have yet to plot it out. If you are getting frustrated from waiting so long for the next chapter, by all means, drop me a line. E-mail and AIM are in my profile, and it'll prolly make me update faster if I know I actually have readers, so it's no bother at all. With that I leave you with one tiny simple request; please click the little button on the lower left of your screen that says "submit review" and let me know what you think. Even if you hate it, let me know what to work on through CONSTRUCTIVE critisism. thanks a bunch! oh, and if there were any glitches, such as paragraph crunching or no scene breaks where there should have been, please let me know and i'll try to fix it. thanks again! 

Ja ne,

Kat


	3. Bad memories and Dark premonitions

**Hello everyone! Long time no see ne? Sorry it took so long, though by the amount of my reviews I don't think I'm talking to many people. sigh Anyways, many thanks to Mizuu and Elenea Galad for your time, insight, all those chats (which actually inspire me…specially those with EG) and of course your never wavering patience and support. I love you guys! COOKIES TO ALL! Anyways, sorry for such a short chapter, but I figured since it has been so long I owed you guys something, so here you go. I didn't get to put in half of what I want, and it sure didn't come out the way I planned…but then again I didn't exactly plan on donating a whole chapter _about_ Alex, let alone through his eyes. Anyways, hope you enjoy!

* * *

**

The battle is over, for now at least. I sigh with relief as I watch Sifkah pull her troops away, retreating into the surrounding trees. I search for my sister and thank the gods when I see her walking down the hill with Kaiei, her hair a bit tousled, but otherwise she's unscathed. She catches my eye and I feel her presence briefly in my mind as hers reaches out. I can feel that something's bothering her, the feeling like a fleeting whisper on the wind as it flashes through my mind, but before I can grasp it, she pulls back. I look at her, confused, but she's already turned from me. I sigh and wait for everyone to gather round, assessing the damage.

Save for minor cuts and bruises, everyone seems fine. Liam has a bloody lip and a black eye, his sister is bleeding from a cut on her arm, and Kegan has a bloody nose, but no one has any broken bones or major cuts.

"Well, that wasn't so bad," Kris whispers to me, "you would have thought the world was going to end with the way you were carrying on."

I frown at his comment, but refrain from lashing out. How could he understand? He wasn't plagued every night with dreams, _nightmares_ that tormented his every sleeping moment. He didn't wake up every night in a cold sweat, trying to figure out which nightmare would come true. Kris seemed to sense that something was wrong, for he was staring at me intently.

"What is it?" He asked, his voice sincere. I hesitate, wondering if I should tell him of last night's hell.

" I…had another dream last night." I finally confess. His eyes widen with concern. Out of all our comrades, even Willam and Risikah, Kris is the only one I confide in about my nightmares, and he's the only one that knows what a burden they are for me. He waits patiently as I hesitate, trying to figure out where to begin.

"We were fighting Nacola's troops. It was pretty intense, but nothing we've never handled before. We were pretty evenly matched, and we were pushing them back when…" I broke off, my voice cracking with the effort to hold back the emotions that threatened to spill out of me.

Among the Shinggrah, we wear our emotions freely, but on the battlefield I cannot allow my feelings to get the better of me. Being captain of the Soldié, I can't lose control in front of my men, not even my brother.

Kris sits silently, waiting for me to continue, but I can tell he's getting uneasy. He knows how bad my nightmares can get, and he knows it's rare when they don't come true. Finally I continue.

"We started pushing them back when I heard someone scream. At first I didn't recognize it, and there was so much going on, I didn't have time to stop and see who it belonged to. Then it came again, Gods it was horrible, filled with pain. But I had no time to react. I was busy blocking an attack from a panther. The screams came two more times. Each one weaker than the last, like the owner of the voice was losing strength. Finally Nacola pulled back. We regrouped, took in the damage, but someone was missing…" Again I hesitate, trying to catch my breath and regain my composure, trying to find the energy to go on.

"Who…who was it?" Kris asks hesitantly. I notice that he's a bit pale. I sigh, letting out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding and nodded straight ahead. He glanced over his shoulder and paled even more when he saw the object of my fears.

"No…" He whispers, so softly that I barely hear him. "Kia..." He turns back to me, his eyes begging me to continue.

"I broke away from the rest of you to look for her. After what seemed like hours I picked up her scent mixed with blood- gods it was almost overwhelming. I followed the scent until I came to a small grove of trees on the outskirts of where we'd been fighting. She was in the center of it, barely recognizable beneath all the blood. She lay on her side, facing away from me, and I tried to make my feet move, tried to make my body respond, but everything was so foggy…so slow. Finally my body was released and I was able to force my way to her side.

"At first I though she was dead, but then I heard her ragged breathing. I put my hand on her shoulder and turned her towards me. All but her face was a bloody mess. She opened her eyes and looked at me. Her eyes were clouded with pain; I think she barely recognized me. They were begging me, pleading with me, but I couldn't do what they asked, not even when she whispered to me.

'End it.' She said, and I just stared at her. She said it over and over again, but I just shook my head. I couldn't, I couldn't bring myself to take her life, even when she was begging me to do it. I just took her hand in mine and squeezed it. She squeezed back and cried, begging over and over until her voice grew soft. I looked down, and her eyes were closed. Tears streamed down her face, but she wasn't breathing. Her last wish to me, and I couldn't even give that to her." I took a deep breath to steady myself. I had almost forgotten Kris was sitting next to me until I felt his hand squeeze my shoulder. I looked up into his face and saw my own fears written across it, but more than that I saw the thing I craved most; Understanding. He alone knows about my premonitions, and he alone knows how much this dream has shaken me. His voice, however, betrays none of this. Calm and slightly reassuring, it is still laced with the sarcastic humor that only he has.

"You do realize she'd kill you if she knew about this. You know how she hates being treated like a child. She can take care of herself, she wouldn't want you protecting her." He says to me, a slight smile playing on his lips, the attempt to quell my fears is mixed with the truth of his words. I know he's right, but that does not stop the fact that she is my sister, and I will kill anything that tries to harm her, especially after what happened to her…how I treated her, how we all treated her before she was ripped away from us.

I feel the familiar pang of guilt stab at my heart as I remember the days of our childhood. How we tortured my sister. She was a half demon, the unworthy daughter to our mighty father. How could we have treated her differently? We were only children, easily swayed and manipulated by the actions and feelings of the adults, whether intentionally or unintentionally shown to us. They were our role models, how were we to know the true effect our actions had on her? Perhaps we could sense our mother's feelings towards her, perhaps we just watched how the other adults treated her and took our examples from them. It was not jealousy of her being named heir that caused me to act that way towards her, I was third in line for that title anyways. Quite the contrary, if anyone should have been jealous of her for that reason, it should have been Axel, for he was the oldest of us all, but he remained fairly neutral to her. He was kind and brotherly, yet always distant, but with Kia it seemed he opened up a bit more, as if she melted whatever ice that enclosed his heart. Indeed, he and Aislin were probably the only ones out of us that were truly kind to her. Aislin would always scold us when she caught us picking on her, then she would dry Kia's tears and lead her away.

Whatever our reasons, we were horrible to her. We shut her out, we called her names, we even hit her. But Kia never complained, no matter what we did to her. She never spoke out against us, never told our father, who would have surely put a stop to it as soon as she did. No matter what, she kept silent, even when our abuse ceased to be the only kind that she was receiving. We never knew about what Lucien was doing to her. If we'd known, we would have stopped our cruelty. We would have done something to protect her. But the first time I learned of what he was doing, was the last time I saw my sister for many years.

* * *

_The night my father died was also the night part of my own soul died. When my mother brought her into the nursery (all the pups from infant to ten years stayed in here) I was shocked by the sight I saw. Kia was clinging to Odessa as if she were the only thing keeping her locked to this world, crying and shaking. At first I was confused; why, after all her resentment towards Kia, would my mother be holding her-comforting her for that matter? Odessa put her down then and told us (Kris, Willam and I were the only ones in the room at the time) to watch her before she left the room. Kia stayed where my mother had left her, still shaking, the tears streaming down the familiar trail down her face. She look at us fearfully, obviously afraid of what we'd do to her. Her hair was tousled, bruises were already forming on her face and arms, and a thin line of blood was beginning to form on her neck. She shrank down, as if trying to make herself invisible, and for a moment we just stood there dumbfounded. Finally I made myself move, and I walked over to my broken sister._

_I reached out to her, but my movement was too quick, causing her to cringe as she cried out. I stopped for a moment, watching her as she whimpered, her eyes wide with fear. After a moment I tried again, this time slower. She held my gaze for a moment, then looked away, gazing at the ground. I knelt beside her and took her face in my hands, forcing her to look at me. Her blue eyes stared back at me, and for a moment my breath caught in my throat as I saw the feelings etched clearly in those wide blue eyes. Fear, humiliation, anger, and most apparent of all: pain. She shook beneath my fingers, no longer trying to hold back the sobs that wracked her body, and after a moment I pulled her to me, letting her find comfort in my arms by sobbing into my shoulder._

_At first she stiffened, but it didn't take long for her to relax, and before long she was telling us everything that had happened that night as well as all the abuse she'd received at Lucien's hand, which earned many angry growls from Kris and Willam, who had decided to join us. After awhile, I'm not sure how long, I pulled her down, letting her rest her head in my lap as I ran my fingers through her hair and down her back; it was a motion that I knew calmed her down, something I had seen both my father and my aunt do. As the night sky quickly made way for dawn, and dawn's light brightened as the morning grew, we had fallen asleep. When I awoke, the day was already over, I learned of my father's death, and I didn't see my sister again for seven long years._

* * *

A tap on my shoulder brings me back to the world and I find myself staring up into the eyes of my sister. Her eyes are grey and clouded with worry. Again I feel her mind reach out to mine; a fog of worried desperation. I don't even have time to ask her what's wrong before she starts talking.

"Can I talk to you?" she whispers. I nod and she took my arm, leading me into the surrounding wood to a more secluded area; where even our comrades' keen ears wouldn't be able to overhear our conversation. I feel my curiosity grow as she hurriedly makes her way ahead of me into the thick forest cover.

"What is it?" I ask her when she finally stops. She looked right into my eyes and stared at me for a long moment before she sighed and answered me.

"Honestly, I don't know." She admits, casting her eyes downward guiltily. I push back the crawling feeling of aggravation at her actions, trying to keep it out of my face; I don't like being interrupted for nothing. I can't keep the edge out of my voice, however, and my words are sharper than I mean them to be as I start to turn back the way we had come.

"Then why did you take me here?" I hear her growl in frustration before I even finish my sentence and I turn back to face her.

" Honestly! Don't tell me you don't feel it too!" She snaps at me. Shocked, I raise a brow, inquiring her to continue. "Something is not right, Alexander." She continues, keeping her voice low now.

"What do you mean?" I ask, now utterly confused.

" Don't tell me you didn't notice! The battle! Something's not right, or were you too busy flirting with Sifkah to notice?" She asks, her tone biting. I feel myself blush involuntarily as I remember the incident she must have been talking about.

* * *

_The young woman and I separated ourselves from the crowd. This was a fight between leaders, and neither of us wanted any interference from the others. Her eyes were fierce, a fire I had rarely seen burning in them, dancing like flames flickering in the wind. Every movement she made showed pure determination, as if this whole fight was nothing more than a chance for her to prove herself. I briefly wondered why, if she were in command of this group, she could possibly need a reason for that. She was not Nacola, but a younger woman, and the glimpses of spots the sun shone in her hair said she was a leopard. A name swirled in my head as I realized who she must be._

_"Sifkah." I said simply, testing the name to see if I was indeed right. She looked at me questioningly and I took that as a sign I was correct._

_"So it's true, you are Nacola's right hand." I smirked. She didn't appear to appreciate someone talking to her so freely however, for she swung her sword at me. I ducked, easily avoiding the blade, and looked at her. She was an exquisite creature…for a Ta-Risha anyway; slim, perfectly formed with a slight, graceful build. Her long hair flowed in the slight breeze and for some reason I found myself wanting to touch it. Her voice interrupted my thoughts, however, and I focused once again on the fight at hand._

_"This is going smoothly. Soon this will be over and I will have brought yet another victory to my people." She said with a haughty smirk, bringing her blade slashing across my neck once again. I barely had time to catch her arm before it cut me, and looking back to her I saw that her eyes were shining with satisfaction. Wench. I found myself smirking and the words were out before I could stop them._

_"Smooth? And here I was under the impression that you liked it rough." I reveled at the reaction that caused. Her eyes widened with shock for a moment before they flashed with anger, a white lightning that heated her movements as it flashed through her veins and I realized then exactly why it was a bad idea to piss off a woman. She became infuriated and attacked more viciously than I had ever seen before, but even then I couldn't stop from laughing. She was quite intriguing if nothing else._

* * *

I felt myself smirk as I looked into my sisters angry eyes.

"So you saw that huh?" I asked in mock innocence.

"Don't play with me, Alex. What the hell is with you? Here you are, freaking out before the battle even begins and then you go off and flirt with the enemy! God! I'll never understand guys!" She said, the anger hot on her lips. I feel my face darken at that last comment.

" And let's hope you never will." I growl softly, not appreciating the thought of my little sister in the arms of a man. She smiles softly at my reaction, standing up to my words with her own.

"You're too overprotective." She said softly. I frown at her, looking down at the ground.

"Can you blame me?" I ask seriously, the statement could be taken in any way, but she understands my meaning. Her eyes flash with an emotion I can't read, but her tone is soft when she replies.

"Alex, we've been through this before. It wasn't your fault. It was just…bad luck."

"That's an interesting thing to call it." I reply, my voice harsh with the unwanted feelings the memories were bringing to the surface. She frowned, though I knew it was more towards her own memories than to my tone of voice; she knows it isn't meant towards her.

"Bad things happen to good people. No one can help that. We can't change the past, Alex. You can't and neither can I, no matter how much we want to. All we can do is go on with our lives …protect what we have now." The intensity in her eyes never wavers and I sigh, a signal for her to explain what was bothering her.

"I don't know, Alex, I just don't know. Something just doesn't feel right. The air is thick here, like some sort of foreboding, and even you have to admit that the battle was over far too quickly. Even Sifkah wouldn't give up so easily. Something is seriously wrong." She looks down, waiting for my response. We're both silent for a few moments, I'm contemplating what she's just told me, and she's patiently awaiting my reaction. After a few heartbeats, I begin to understand what she was talking about. There is a tension in the air I hadn't noticed before. I was too preoccupied in worrying about Rika to even notice the stiffness around us. Not even a breeze is blowing and the fact that Sifkah had given up so easily leaves me wondering if maybe my sister is right. After a moment I look at her, who has returned her attention back to me, gazing at me with worried eyes.

" You're right. There is a certain unease in the air. Tell the others to stay alert, I have a feeling we haven't seen the last of Sifkah tonight." She nods, apparently relieved that I believe her, and walks back to the others. I stay behind however, as a new wave of worry hits me. If today's battle is indeed not over yet, could last night's nightmare still come true? The thought is almost too much to bear, and the impact it has on my body is staggering; it takes all my will power to keep myself from falling to my knees, but I succeed, promising myself one thing. I will not let anything happen to Kia, and Gods help anyone who tries to take her from me.

* * *

**A/N ok, chapter 3 FINALLY done…Only took me a year to write up, but I must say, if people would review then it would make me want to update much faster! Just a little hint so please, PLEASE review…even if it's to complain, I really want input on this story! Besides, it might actually convince Alex to come out from under the bed.**

**Alex: mutters from under bed don't count on it!**

**Me: sigh Why must you be so hopeless!  
Alex:… you can't see, but I'm giving you the finger….  
Me: --; You're lucky you're under the bed and I'm too lazy to go after you!  
Alex: Shut up already, you're rambling!**

**Me: Fine…to readers Much loves to you all!**

**AC**


End file.
